318 FARM ANIMALS 
“To prepare carp in the best manner for the table it should be 
both skinned and drawn, soaked in salt water overnight, then boiled 
and finally baked with proper dressing.” 
3. Care of carp.—Carp culture does not require ex- 
pensive arrangements, either for rearing the young or 
for raising the old. Where carp have fallen in disfavor 
it has been due largely to insanitary quarters. The 
best authorities claim that the stock ponds should con- 
tain good water and be drained and aired at least once 
a year. For best results three kinds of ponds are de- 
sirable: (1) Spawning pond in which the water is 
shallow. and easily warmed by the sun for the spawning 
fish; (2) rearing pond, to which the little fish are trans- 
ferred until a year or two old; and (38) the raising pond, 
in which the large fish are kept until fit for market and 
table use, or when they have reached a weight of two 
and a half or three pounds. 
4, Catfish—The two varieties of catfish that most 
fully respond to pond culture are the common bull- 
head and the yellow catfish. A 
third variety, the spotted catfish, 
does not take kindly to domestica- 
tion. When transferred to hatch- 
ery ponds these fish refuse to breed, 
even when handled by the greatest experts. On the 
other hand the common bullhead and the yellow catfish 
when transferred readily adapt themselves to their new 
environments and multiply rapidly. This is because of 
the great care the parents exercise during the period of 
egg incubation and babyhood of the young. These cat- 
fish offer great possibilities in agriculture. Low, wet 
land, fed by springs, drains or creeks can he easily con- 
verted into a catfish pond, thus furnishing an abundant 
supply for table use and market. Under favorable con- 
BULLHEAD CATFISH 
